Al Wasl's players and officials celebrate with the Super Shield.
Doha: Nicolas Gimenez’s sole goal helped Al Wasl secure the victory against Al Sadd as the Dubai-based club clinched the Qatar –UAE Super Cup Super Shield title at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium yesterday.
The Argentine-Emirati midfielder struck in the 54th minute lifting his team above the Qatari football heavyweights in the fiercely contested battle.
The hosts missed a number of golden opportunities as their loss marked third straight defeat for a Qatari side in the ongoing Qatar –UAE Super Cup.
Despite a goalless first half, Al Sadd dominated the ball possession, trying to attack at every opportunity they had. Despite their control,
Al Wasl almost broke the deadlock in the 41st minute when Ali Saleh’s dazzling solo effort was thwarted by the intervention from Al Sadd’s Pedro Miguel who expertly blocked the shot.
The second half began with Al Sadd pushing hard, but Al Wasl’s defence proved stronger.
In the 54th minute, Haris Seferovic sent a clever through pass to Gimenez who sent the ball flying from 25-yards out to leave goalkeeper Saad Al Sheeb stunned. Despite the setback, Al Sadd fought hard. Minutes after conceding the goal, they launched a series of attacks that tested Al Wasl’s defense multiple times.
One of their best opportunities came in the 66th minute when Pedro Miguel’s cross found Hassan Al Haydos inside the box. However, Al Haydos’ header made no difference as Al Wasl custodian Khaled Al Senani’s stunning effort denied the equaliser.
Substitute Rafa Mujica also came close to leveling the score in the 78th minute. However, despite his powerful long-range effort, the ball bounced off the crossbar.
In the stoppage time, Al Sadd earned a free kick and Ahmed Suhail’s attempt was denied once again by Senani who made brilliant one-handed save. Moments later, Al Haydos was sent off following a heated altercation, reducing Al Sadd to 10 men before the referee blew the final whistle to confirm Al Wasl’s memorable win.
The UAE sides have won all the three trophies so far with Shabab Al Ahli winning the Challenge Shield after a 3-1 victory over Al Rayyan at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium on Thursday, followed by Al Nasr’s commanding 5-1 victory over Qatar SC in the Super Cup clash in Dubai on Friday.
Today’s fourth and final Qatar-UAE Super Cup clash will see Al Wakrah and Al Wahda compete for the Challenge Cup in Abu Dhabi.
